Post-Football: How Technology and Money Changed the Game

Chilean journalist Juan Pablo Meneses argues in his book Postfútbol that traditional football has ended, replaced by a “post-football” era. This new phase prioritizes individual player brands over team loyalty and replaces full-match consumption with short-form, dopamine-driven digital content and integrated sports betting.

Why is the “Post-Football” Era Replacing Traditional Sport?

Traditional football functioned as a collective identity. According to Meneses, that model has collapsed. The sport now mirrors a society obsessed with monetization and hyper-registration. Fans no longer follow clubs; they follow individuals who operate as personal brands.

Meneses points to a specific turning point: a conversation he overheard in Barcelona involving a child discussing Neymar’s transfer. The child did not mention trophies or goals, but instead asked if they could “recover the investment.” This shift indicates that even young fans now view the sport through a financial lens.

How Smartphones and “TikTok-style” Consumption Change the Game

The smartphone has fundamentally altered how fans process the game. Meneses claims that the brain now functions on dopamine, innovation, and vertigo. Because a standard 90-minute match contains “dead moments,” the industry is shifting toward “highlights” and “reels.”

Meneses compares this evolution to the porn industry, stating that football has learned to capture attention by moving directly to the “climax” or “ecstasy” of a play. He describes the Kings League—a competition created by Gerard Piqué and Ibai Llanos—as “hardcore football porn” because it strips away patience in favor of constant, viralizable stimuli.

The Generation Z Shift

Data from Costa Rica suggests a growing trend among Generation Z: many no longer have a favorite team. Instead, they consume the lifestyle of the player. They track what a footballer buys, where they live, and who they date. For these viewers, the match is secondary to the digital experience surrounding the athlete.

What Role Do Betting and Data Play in Modern Football?

Betting is no longer a side activity; for many, it is the primary event. Meneses recounts an instance in a journalism class where students celebrated a betting win on their phones during a lecture. One student described winning money while their team won as “sweeter than honey.”

This financialization extends to the equipment. FIFA now utilizes “smart balls” equipped with sensors and AI to track velocity, trajectories, and movement patterns in real time. This transforms the ball from a piece of sporting equipment into a permanent data source.

Is the Shift to Post-Football Irreversible?

Meneses suggests the change is a reflection of broader societal shifts. He argues that the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) is not just a tool for fairness, but a symbol of a society where everything is permanently recorded and monitored.

While the business of football was once managed by FIFA, Meneses asserts that “the business now manages FIFA.” This reversal suggests that the commercial logic of investment funds and digital attention economies now dictates the rules of the game.

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